Poll: How did the scope/volume of the projects change over the course of your translation career? Thread poster: ProZ.com Staff
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This forum topic is for the discussion of the poll question "How did the scope/volume of the projects change over the course of your translation career?".
This poll was originally submitted by Edwin den Boer. View the poll results »
| | | | Lieven Malaise 
Belgium
Local time: 02:30
Member (2020)
French to Dutch
+ ...
Until this day I receive a mix of small, mid-size and large translation/MTPE projects and it has basically always been that way. I prefer the larger ones, but I accept everything.
| | | | | No clear pattern | Apr 23, 2025 |
One of my customers (my long-standing one), who used to send very repetitive medium-sized jobs, now only asks for small updates or add-ons (from 20 to 400 words), always paid with a minimum charge. I haven’t noticed any change regarding the other clients, except perhaps for a small reduction in orders…
| | | | Thomas Pfann
United Kingdom
Local time: 01:30
English to German
+ ...
Definitely smaller.
In my early freelance days, 15-20,000 words for translation would be quite normal. I don't even remember the last time I worked on something that size. Now, if a translation job is more than 4,000 words, I consider it a 'big job'.
Of course, this reflects how things are done these days. Everything is instant and online. You don't need to translate and check and then publish whole manuals anymore – instead, you have short help articles which are con... See more Definitely smaller.
In my early freelance days, 15-20,000 words for translation would be quite normal. I don't even remember the last time I worked on something that size. Now, if a translation job is more than 4,000 words, I consider it a 'big job'.
Of course, this reflects how things are done these days. Everything is instant and online. You don't need to translate and check and then publish whole manuals anymore – instead, you have short help articles which are constantly updated. The same goes for software: In the old days, software would get translated and released (together with all the collaterals like packaging, manuals, online help) and then there would be nothing until the next software release a few months later. Today, these release cycles have mostly disappeared and instead there are continuous updates – which means a constant need for small batches to be translated. A bug fix here, a new feature there.
Personally, I prefer this steady trickle of smaller jobs that I can finish in a day or two. I sometimes feel I no longer have the stamina for the really large projects!
[Edited at 2025-04-24 00:44 GMT] ▲ Collapse
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| Tense choice | Apr 23, 2025 |
Interesting choice of tenses, there.
An acknowledgement that our careers, collectively, are now over, is it?
Otherwise, my experience broadly mirrors that of Thomas, I think.
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Charlie Bavington wrote:
An acknowledgement that our careers, collectively, are now over, is it?
This is my feeling.
| | | | | There were jobs of all sizes ... | Apr 23, 2025 |
and then there were almost none : /
80% of my clients have just disappeared.
| | | | Liena V.
Latvia
Local time: 03:30
Member (2014)
French to Latvian
+ ...
| No clear pattern | Apr 23, 2025 |
The average volume of a project for each of my clients has not changed, but the share each client takes in my total volume is different. The one that used to provide a stable flow of long documents for over a decade is doing it much less now, while those who usually have smaller projects at my highest rates or minimum fee have even increased their requests lately. Can't say that I mind it at all.
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Oscar Núñez Alfaro
Costa Rica
Local time: 19:30
Member (Oct 2026)
English to Spanish
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| They have became in larger projects! | Apr 23, 2025 |
In my experience, it has become larger projects because I am really new in this translation industry. I started to work with non-profits that require short texts and books to complete, and I decided to do the bigger projects. It is satisfying and demanding patience and effort.
| | | | Baran Keki
Türkiye
Local time: 04:30
Member
English to Turkish
| Have they really? | Apr 24, 2025 |
Oscar Núñez Alfaro wrote:
In my experience, it has become larger projects because I am really new in this translation industry. I started to work with non-profits that require short texts and books to complete, and I decided to do the bigger projects. It is satisfying and demanding patience and effort.
I hope those non-profits are paying you at least 6 cents per word for your 'patience' and 'effort'.
Seeing as how you're getting bigger projects, you should do the Christian thing and refer some of those clients to Justin. He's not doing very good at the minute by the sounds of it.
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Initially I was fully-dependent upon agencies for my income. The number and size of projects increased over time until I reached an apex between 2008-2012, when I was involved in several large-scale projects lasting for months at a time. Eventually, I developed more direct clients whose projects which, although smaller, paid much better, thus my income increased with an accompanying decrease in stress. At the end of my full-time career in 2022, I had five regular direct clients and a relationshi... See more Initially I was fully-dependent upon agencies for my income. The number and size of projects increased over time until I reached an apex between 2008-2012, when I was involved in several large-scale projects lasting for months at a time. Eventually, I developed more direct clients whose projects which, although smaller, paid much better, thus my income increased with an accompanying decrease in stress. At the end of my full-time career in 2022, I had five regular direct clients and a relationship with one agency which I maintained for sentimental reasons. ▲ Collapse
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